Property Management Software for the Modern Property Manager

Prior to joining WorkSpace as a customer success manager, I worked in property management for ten years and can’t tell you how many times my to-do list was scrapped by a new priority appearing from out of the blue like the following example. Sound familiar?

Upon arriving to work, a tenant informs you that she slipped in the restroom because a toilet is overflowing on the second floor; you make a short list and get started:

1. Text the day porter to clean the mess
2. Call the janitorial company and find out why they didn’t report the broken toilet while they were onsite
3. Email your tenants that the second floor is out of order
4. Send a work order to your engineers; engineers determine a plumber is needed and call him for service
5. Check your insurance binder for the plumber’s certificate, learn it has expired, email the provider for an updated certificate
6. Review the fallen tenant’s lease abstract, notes, and contact information
7. Draft a slip-and-fall incident report with photos, insurance information, and a statement

First off, your whole morning is shot. Total bummer, but not uncommon. Second, in order to take care of the issue at hand, you’re utilizing up to seven different systems (email, phone, work order systems, binders, lease files, etc.) to complete all the steps associated with this one task.

The “busy” work eats into your time to do meaningful work due to inefficient processes and multiple systems. It doesn’t have to be this way, and that’s exactly where property management software can help.

The Challenges for Today’s Property Management Firms

The best property managers we’ve met want to get out of the weeds, delegate routine tasks, and spend their brainpower on the most material issues facing their business.

However, too often, the volume of daily administrative tasks prevents operations teams from realizing their full impact and, in turn, prevents property management firms from realizing their full growth potential.

Based on recent polls, property managers revealed that some of their biggest challenges today include:

• Hiring and maintaining staff
• Growing revenue
• Managing time
• Controlling costs
• Efficiently performing accounting tasks
• Effectively communicating to tenants

Every one of these challenges can be daunting, but the best firms keep one eye on strategic considerations for their future, which for more and more firms includes the adoption of property management software. It’s no wonder that the November 2020 Globe Newswire Report estimates the property management software market size will reach $2.58 billion USD by 2027.

What is Property Management Software?

Property management software is a solution that allows for the completion of hundreds of small tasks while remaining focused on big picture items. You shouldn’t have to switch between a work order system and an Excel spreadsheet, or email and a binder full of insurance certificates for a single issue, especially when you’re responsible for the productivity of staff and management of operating costs.

What you need is commercial real estate (CRE) property management software. What you don’t need is a platform that was built for something else that you use for property management, or several systems quilted together to give you something…adequate, or software so confusing you need a degree in IT to use it.

Built for CRE, property management software gives you the capability to monitor work orders, organize leases and contracts, log incident reports, notify security, and oversee preventive maintenance.

Replace day-to-day operational tasks like tracking insurance certificates and tenant communication with automation, and release your staff to do meaningful work.

WorkSpace is an all-inclusive platform that crosses a work order system with a filing cabinet, a communication tool, and a property information binder to systemize daily operations and minimize the number of clicks you need to solve problems. Simplify your workflow by using one system to send service requests, track insurance certificates, and invoice tenants.

Unlike other property management software, WorkSpace is intuitive, uncomplicated, and uncluttered. Everyone from investors to new employees can understand the details of your property immediately upon logging in.

But that doesn’t mean you’re on your own. With white-glove onboarding, management teams are involved from implementation to training, laying the foundation for long-lasting customer success while leaving the heavy lifting to the software experts.

Benefits of Property Management Software for Firms

Property management software gives you access to your data from anywhere. It removes low-value work to free you and your team up for high-value person-to-person interaction—one that benefits the property manager, building staff, tenants, and building owners.

With a modern approach to property operations, a solution like WorkSpace can help you save time, reduce operating expenses, improve tenant satisfaction, and put you ahead of the competition.

Here are a few ways that a property management platform will benefit your firm.

1. Drive Efficiency

Your management staff should be spending their time creating substantive interactions with tenants instead of doing mindless data entry. Streamline workflows to get more done and expand your manager’s reach beyond their desk.

2. Enhanced Tenant Satisfaction

Demonstrate your property’s value to tenants by providing a modern experience through WorkSpace’s Tenant Express portal available on the web or mobile app.

3. Minimize Risk

Automate notifications, schedules, and status updates, eliminating the possibility for human error where it doesn’t need to exist.

4. Quick Adoption

It’s an intuitive platform your team will love. Easy to learn and easy to use means no straddling between old and new processes. And if you do get stuck, the Customer Support Center is only a click away.

Key Features of Property Management Software for Property Managers

Today, property management teams are bombarded with responsibilities both big and small and require a tremendous amount of task switching. One minute you’re dealing with a difficult tenant, the next you’re compiling reports, and before you know it, you have a massive backlog of tasks that prevent you from heading home.

Here’s how property management software can help you get home in time for dinner.

1. Service Requests with Real-Time Updates 

Manage the complete lifecycle of service requests from submission to close-out, bill tenants for above-standard work with clean and professional-looking invoices, escalate requests that need more attention, keep tenants updated on the request progress, and monitor your team’s response performance with ready-to-run reports.

2. Preventive Maintenance Tracking and Scheduling

3. Broadcasts for Building and Tenant Communications

Tidy up your email by using WorkSpace for mass communication. For tenant memos, announcements, or emergencies, use the broadcast feature to send tenants a message via email, text, or both. Save even more time by creating templates for your weekly food truck announcement or holiday building hours’ reminder.

4. Automated Certificate of Insurance (COI) Notifications

Quit tracking dates in Excel, emailing tenants individually, filling paper certificates, and consolidate all things insurance. Store, approve and monitor while WorkSpace sends out expiration notifications on your behalf.

5. Digital Filing Cabinet for All Property Documents

Think about the last time you went hunting for a document in your email. This week? Today? WorkSpace is the one place for all critical property-level documents to be stored and made accessible. We’re talking leases, COIs, equipment manuals/warranties, financial reports, budgets… we could go on and on. Really.

Add Value Today with Property Management Software

A good portion of property managers today are already using some sort of property management software, yet the software is not evolving quickly enough. It’s possible that their current solution isn’t intuitive, or easy to onboard creating a barrier to adoption, or just simply doesn’t meet all of their needs.

The truth is that costs are rising each year and property management firms need their property managers to be more efficient and add more value for their clients.

Realistically, the best way to achieve this is through a software solution that allows you to automate tasks and free up time and money for your team to focus on what matters most to your business—growing revenue. If you’re interested in seeing what WorkSpace can do for you, we’d be happy to give you a tour.